Crochet Baby Dress

Making a Crochet Baby Dress

Some of my most treasured possessions are hand-made items that came from my ancestors. One of them is a crochet baby dress and cardigan set. Though I’m not sure exactly who made it, this crochet baby dress set is cherished nonetheless. This could help to label me as “old-fashioned”, but I absolutely love the idea of littles in handmade items.

Through my childhood, I’ve always had an affinity for the love that went into handmade gifts from relatives. When I got pregnant, I started to heavily brainstorm the things I could make for my baby (and future babies). Items that could be passed down through generations.

I’ve since made a number of blankets for my daughter. Now, with summer weather around the bend I decided to jump into my first crocheted wearable.

Choosing a Pattern

I often spend more time that I’d care to admit perusing Pinterest for patterns and inspiration. This time was no exception, and when I came across the pattern for this Sugar n Spice Dress I knew I had to make it.

Starting Over

However, there was one small problem. The pattern only included instruction for size 0-3 months. My baby is almost 7 months now. I’d have to make adjustments.

Having not made a wearable of any kind prior to this – do hats count? – I had absolutely no idea how to adjust the pattern for the larger size. So, I set out for another pattern. Yet, I couldn’t get the first out of my head. Could I combine two patterns – an alternate for the yoke and still use the initial for the skirt? Surely I could, and did!

This Butterfly Kisses Dress lent its yoke/bodice perfectly to the Sugar n Spice skirt. Well, almost perfectly. In the end, I had to make an adjustment to get my number of stitches in line for the skirt’s pattern repeat. A very simple fix of treble 2 together. I also added three extra rounds of the pattern repeat for length.